Content engagement is the backbone of successful social media marketing. Most brands are striving for increased engagement on their posts.
However, many find themselves unsure of how to break free from stagnant strategies or navigate the ever-changing feed algorithms. In this fast-paced digital landscape, achieving better social media engagement is an ongoing process, with practically endless room for improvement.
Social media engagement encompasses the vital measurements of comments, likes, clicks, mentions and shares. The more of these you have, the more effectively you can accomplish your social media objectives.
For modern brands with an online presence, strong social media engagement serves as a testament to their impact in the market. However, it’s important to note that boosting social media engagement goes beyond the desire to appear popular.
Social media engagement is all about forging meaningful connections with current and potential customers. In turn, these amplify your brand’s presence and enhance both your online and offline return on investment (ROI).
In this article, we’ll explore five effective strategies for increasing social media engagement. By the end of it, you’ll be equipped to elevate your brand’s engagement and build meaningful connections with your target audience.
1. Boost Engagement with Paid Content
Sponsoring your content is one of the primary strategies to increase social media engagement. With the constantly evolving algorithms on social media platforms, achieving significant numbers organically can be incredibly challenging.
Investing in sponsored posts or advertisements provides an opportunity to expand your reach and drive higher engagement with your target audience.
A successful example of a paid campaign is Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign. By personalising their bottles with popular names and encouraging customers to share their experiences using the hashtag #ShareACoke, Coca-Cola generated immense engagement and user-generated content.
This campaign not only increased social media engagement but also created a sense of connection and excitement among their audience. During the UK campaign, Coca-Cola witnessed a remarkable impact. Approximately 51% of Twitter users actively engaged with the brand by directly or indirectly mentioning Coca-Cola’s name or utilising related hashtags.
This goes to show that while sponsored content may require financial investment, it can yield significant results in boosting engagement and expanding brand visibility.
However, it’s important to recognise that not all businesses have a huge budget to spare for paid campaigns. Below, we will explore some of the organic ways to increase social media engagement.
2. Increase your Engagement by Showing a Human Side to Your Brand
When it comes to increasing social media engagement, showcasing the human side behind your brand plays a vital role. Brands that reveal a genuine person behind their social media presence tend to be more enticing to engage with. Encouraging your social media team to personally interact with posts is a common practice. However, there are additional ways to add a personal touch:
- Prompt Responses. Acknowledge and address questions or concerns raised by your audience in a timely manner. Being responsive shows that there’s an attentive human behind the brand, ready to provide assistance and support. Whether it’s offering solutions or expressing gratitude, personalised responses help foster engagement.
- Injecting Personality. Don’t be afraid to develop your brand’s voice when responding to comments or engaging in conversations. Injecting humour or warmth when appropriate can make your brand more relatable and likeable, further enhancing engagement levels.
- Behind-the-Scenes Content. Share photos or videos that offer a glimpse into the people behind your brand. By showcasing the individuals who contribute to your brand’s success, you humanise the organisation and make it more relatable. This transparency boosts trust and encourages stronger engagement.
3. Post Content That Demands Social Media Engagement
To boost social media engagement, it is crucial to produce content that invites active participation from your audience.
Whether it’s through thought-provoking polls on Twitter, relatable videos, humourous graphics, or product photos that encourage tagging friends, create content that elicits a positive reaction.
Opt for posts that highlight beauty, inspiration, humour, or relatability, aiming to evoke an emotional response. One great example of using humour on social media is Ryanair. Their social media accounts are full of dry and sarcastic humour, often playfully mocking passengers. This brand personality they have created for themselves reflects the business perfectly, as a low-cost, basic airline.
The tweet below is one of the more outrageous examples. As this contradicts the level of customer service you would normally expect from a brand, this type of content is certainly not for every business. However, it is this very boldness that incites their huge levels of engagement.
4. Keep the Interactions Flowing
Maintaining a continuous flow of conversation is key. While some may consider conversation an art, there is a formula to it: volleying attention and questions back and forth. The same applies to online conversations, where brands must engage both reactively and proactively.
Reactively, this involves promptly responding to direct messages, mentions, or comments.
Proactively, brands initiate conversations with individuals who may be talking about them indirectly, perhaps through misspelt brand names or unofficial nicknames.
When customers reach out to you through messages or comments, they present an opportunity for meaningful interaction.
Regardless of the sentiment expressed, it is essential to respond to each customer. Show gratitude for positive messages and offer assistance or solutions for negative ones.
The only exception to responding is when someone tags a friend, as they are not directly engaging with you. By actively engaging with your audience, you demonstrate attentiveness, build positive relationships, and encourage further engagement on social media.
5. Create Topical Posts and Utilise Trends
Harnessing the power of staying topical and jumping on trending hashtags can significantly boost social media engagement.
When you’re unsure about what to talk about, simply join existing conversations that are already happening. Commenting on current events, trends, and popular culture while aligning them with your brand offers a chance to instantly connect with your audience in a timely manner.
Whether it’s discussing trending pop culture phenomena, such as the Tiger King craze of Spring 2020, or capitalising on big events like the World Cup or Eurovision, these moments provide excellent opportunities for creating relevant and engaging posts.
By leveraging trending topics and incorporating them into your content strategy, you can increase visibility, attract a wider audience, and spark meaningful interactions with your followers.
However, it’s important not to jump on every trend. Selecting the ones that are relevant to your brand means that your content will continue to be relatable and provide value to your audience.
How to Increase Social Media Engagement: Conclusion
In conclusion, social media engagement plays a critical role in your online success. As a ranking signal on all platforms, engaging content is deemed interesting and valuable by algorithms, resulting in increased visibility to a wider audience.
By actively encouraging people to engage with your content, you can grow your social accounts and expand your reach. Furthermore, social media engagement provides valuable insights into how your audience responds to your content.
By analysing these metrics, you can refine your strategy to better align with your target audience’s preferences, interests, and expectations. Incorporating social media engagement metrics into your content planning process is an effective approach to boost account growth and enhance your online presence.
